


Domestic Filmmaking

by jabedalien



Series: Modern Vampirism [4]
Category: Community (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Vampire, Domestic Fluff, M/M, One Shot Collection, Snakes, Tooth-Rotting Fluff, Vampire Abed as always
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-08-19
Updated: 2020-08-19
Packaged: 2021-03-06 05:20:48
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 1,421
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25988131
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/jabedalien/pseuds/jabedalien
Summary: “What are those videos?” Jeff asked, pointing to a cluster of icons at the top of the page.“I made these a few years ago. When I used to like carrying that little camera around.” Abed said, scrolling up so Jeff could see them.Jeff nodded. Abed had cycled through various random interests over the years. Filming the two of them with his old camcorder was among the more normal, actually.
Relationships: Abed Nadir/Jeff Winger
Series: Modern Vampirism [4]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1866472
Comments: 9
Kudos: 17





	1. ((home video: marceline))

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Marceline is a hognose snake, I'm imagining to look like this: https://cutesnakes.tumblr.com/post/58048164128/snake-lovers-leucistic-western-hognose
> 
> if you know the reference for the title format we are best friends now.

“You busy?” Jeff leaned over Abed’s shoulder.

“Not particularly.” Abed said, opening a folder on his computer. Jeff took the seat next to him at the kitchen table.

“What are those videos?” Jeff asked, pointing to a cluster of icons at the top of the page.

“I made these a few years ago. When I used to like carrying that little camera around.” Abed said, scrolling up so Jeff could see them.

Jeff nodded. Abed had cycled through various random interests over the years. Filming the two of them with his old camcorder was among the more normal, actually.

“Is this from when you got Marceline?” Jeff pointed to a one titled _((home movie: marceline))_

“Aren’t you gonna say hi, Marcie?” Abed asked as he clicked on the thumbnail.

At the mention of her name, the snake popped her pink head out from Abed’s sweatshirt hood.

“Jeez, I didn’t even know she was out right now.” Jeff laughed as he pet her.

At the very least, the camera thing was not nearly as weird as that different, but overlapping interest. This one involved Abed reading something that made him think he might be able to communicate with snakes, and Jeff coming home to a huge cage in the living room. The worst part of that one was how after a whole argument, Abed proved he _could_ actually talk to the damn thing.

“She sits with me while I’m working.” Abed said as she slithers out onto Abed’s shoulder and nuzzles up to his cheek. “But only if she promises to be quiet.”

Marceline pulled back and hissed at him.

“Yeah, you have been, I’m done now.” Abed said in response. She relaxed, draping around his neck.

Jeff reached over to press play.

…

((home movie: marceline))

The camera turns on showing Abed’s sneakers in rocky sand out in some state park. He sets the camera down and sits cross-legged.

“I’m out here cause I found something in the binding of this book.” Abed says to the camera, opening his messenger bag and pulling out his old book, plus a wrinkled note. “About being able to communicate with snakes, so I figured I’d just come and try it out. According to the internet, there are snakes somewhere out here.”

After he’s done the intro he sits waiting for a moment, until a pale pink snake approaches him, its stubby head nudging the bottom of his shoe. He looks down at it and it hisses. There’s a second where Abed recoils, then he leans in closer to the snake.

“Hi.” He whispers, holding his hand out. It wraps around his hand and turns to face Abed and hisses.

“I don’t really know.” Abed answers. “But I have fangs, too.” He says, opening his mouth. The snake opens its own jaw in response and Abed grins.

“Are you a boy or a girl or what?” Abed asks. “I don’t know much about snake gender.”

The snake says something that makes Abed chuckle, and as Jeff watches he’s immensely curious about what that would possibly be.

“Okay, if you’re a girl can I call you Marceline?”

Marceline hisses and presses her face to Abed’s nose. “I have a friend who called me that.” Abed tells her, and she hisses back. In the middle of it, Abed looks over to the camera for just a second.

“You want to come back with me? What about the woods and like, living wild and free and all that?”

Marceline answers and Abed nods. “Yeah, you wouldn’t have to hunt lizards, that’s for sure.”

He gets up and grabs the camera, holding it to Marceline, who sticks her forked tongue out as the video ends.

…

“I couldn’t believe it when she actually talked. I really thought it was a long shot.” Abed said.

Marceline responds and Abed translates for Jeff.

“Marcie said that she’d heard me start the video and really wanted to see if we could talk to each other. She was just as surprised when I understood her.”

“That’s oddly adorable.” Jeff chuckles as Abed closed the window.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> thanks so much to the server for being the best and also answering questions like "what cool snakes are in colorado?" when i ask them <3


	2. ((home movie: bonsai))

“This one’s cute.” Abed said, starting another video. Marceline hissed at him.

“They can’t _all_ be about you, Marcie.”

“I remember this day.” Jeff said as the camera panned across a greenhouse bursting with plants and a small waterfall.

...

((home movie: bonsai))

“Did you have to film here or were you looking for a chance to be romantic?” Jeff asks, looking over the camera at Abed.

“You’re the worst.” Abed answers from offscreen and then, “I’m not answering that.”

Jeff has to crouch until he’s basically folded in half to get under a huge fern plant dangling from the ceiling above them, and Abed’s laughing filming it until it’s his turn and it’s just as hard as Jeff made it look. When he stands back up, Jeff grabs the camera from his hand and turns it around on him.

“Director and artist extraordinaire Abed Nadir,” Jeff calls out from behind the camera. “what’s your favorite plant?”

Abed grins, fangs showing, and looks into the lens. “Well you see, I could never own a plant. They are not my friends.”

He reaches over and holds a fern curled next to his head, and Jeff manages to zoom in, a little off-center, at the way it wilts under his touch until he pulls away.

“I do like the huge monstera leaves.” Abed says, pointing to a plant a few feet to the side. “Very Jurassic Park.”

Abed snatches the camera from Jeff’s hand. “How about you, Jeffrey?”

“I like all of it.” Jeff tells the camcorder. “Look at that up there, Abed.” He points to the glass ceiling above them, and the camera follows. Through the canopy of green you can see another giant plant hanging, with grapefruit growing on the stems. “I didn’t even know you could _do_ that.”

“Maybe this place is more out of Avatar.” Abed says.

The video follows them through the rest of the greenhouse, stopping to rest on a black butterfly that lands on Abed’s finger. Jeff takes the camera to film him for that, and a few other times, but it’s mostly Jeff pointing out a really tall cactus, and Abed answering while he takes the video. Abed loves that about it, because when he’s watching from his point of view it’s like reliving the whole day again. He gets to watch Jeff crack jokes and hold a branch up because Abed’s afraid he’s going to hit it, as many times as he wants. As they walk out into the sun and Abed turns the camera around and they wave, the video cuts out and _November 20th : Jeff’s Birthday_ flashes across the screen.

…

“Do you like it?” Abed asks, the camera focused on Jeff with a plant in his hand.

“Yeah, it’s so _small_.” Jeff says. He’s holding a little bonsai tree in his hand, the planter fitting easily in his palm, inspecting tiny branches.

“They can live for hundreds of years if you take care of them.” Abed explained. “There’s one that’s like, 800. So it can stay with us for a crazy long time.”

“As long as you aren’t the one taking care of it.” Jeff teases.

“You have to thank Britta too, she’s the one that picked it up. I didn’t wanna hurt it.”

“That’s amazing though, Abed.” Jeff says, looking past the camera to him, eyes wide.

“I just thought of it because of how much you liked the botanical gardens.” Abed voices offscreen. “Don’t expect any more good gifts for the rest of eternity, cause I can’t deliver.”

“This one alone is plenty, and you already know how bad I am at giving gifts.”

…

When the video ends, Jeff goes over to the windowsill and grabs the tree. Abed leans away to avoid touching it, but Marceline slithers over and wraps around the base, he tongue darting out at the leaves. It doesn’t look much different than in the video, other than that the trunk seems a little taller and it’s starting to curve to one side.  
Jeff really did like the tree, thought it was probably the best gift he’d ever gotten. For some reason the idea of a tree that lived for centuries and could go with them wherever they went was oddly comforting. It always seemed like Abed thought so too, because even though he couldn’t touch it he’d sit by the window and watch it, like he was willing it to grow as time spun on.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> as always im jabedalien on tumblr !


End file.
